Rolls-Royce has signed a £8 million contract to supply the mooring system for the world’s largest semi-submersible crane vessel (SSCV),
Sleipnir. The vessel will be built in Singapore by SembCorp Marine for the Dutch company Heerema Offshore Services.

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Image: Rolls-Royce
Asbjørn Skaro, Rolls-Royce, Executive Vice President – Deck Machinery, said: “Mooring a giant crane is a challenge we are happy to tackle
, and it’s a great pleasure working with SembCorp Marine on this unique project. The system to be delivered by Rolls-Royce builds on
decades of experience with advanced deck machinery for both vessels and floating units.”

Mooring systems from Rolls-Royce are designed to operate safely in the harshest climatic zones.
For this vessel – the “Sleipnir” – Rolls-Royce will deliver a tailor made equipment package for specific operations,
comprising a 12 point mooring system including electric driven winches, fairleads, wire sheaves and also a control system.

When completed the vessel will be 220 metres in length, have a width of 102 metres and a displacement of 273,700 tonnes at maximum operational draft.
It will be equipped with two cranes of 10,000 tonnes lifting capacity each,
providing the heavy lifting capacity to install and remove offshore facilities and install subsea structures,
foundations, moorings, and floating structures in deep water. The Sleipnir will be self-propelled with a transit speed of 10 knots, and will operate on dual-fuel.

The vessel is scheduled to be delivered from the yard in the second half of 2018.

The global market for offshore vessels is forecast to stay challenging into 2017,
as operators continue to find it hard to achieve high utilisation and charter rates have fallen significantly in some markets, according to MMA Offshore.

Marine service provider MMA noted that market conditions in the offshore oil and gas industry continue to be difficult with oil prices at 12 year lows.

“The international market for offshore vessels remains very difficult with large numbers of vessels competing for limited work.
Maintaining utilisation remains challenging and rates have now come down by up to 50% in some markets,” said Jeffrey Weber, managing director of MMA.

“The Middle East is holding up slightly better in terms of utilisation and MMA is focused on growing its operations in this region,
” Weber adder.

MMA shared that vessel operators in the Southeast Asian market continue to price at close to breakeven rates to maintain utilisation,
with day rates now approximately 40-50% lower than June 2014 levels.

The Middle East market continues to hold up better with utilisation relatively stable but rates down over 30%.

Fremantle-based MMA owns and operates over 60 OSVs throughout Australia and internationally.
Reduced construction activity in Australia will impact its vessels and supply based businesses and lower activity is expected globally as well.

The tough operating environment has led to MMA posting a net profit of AUD6.46m ($4.67m) in the first half ended 31 December 2015,
down 82.8% from AUD37.71m in the previous corresponding period.

Revenue for its first half of financial year 2016 also fell by 32.2% year-on-year to AUD309.33m.

“At this stage, we anticipate market conditions will remain challenging for the remainder of FY16 and into FY17.
We expect second half earnings to be significantly lower than the first half as a result of reduced Australian construction activity,
the seasonal impact of the Southeast Asian monsoon period and ongoing depressed market conditions,” Weber said.

Otto Marine Limited, a leading offshore chartering group, which owns and operates more than 50 offshore support vessels globally, and also engaged in specializing shipbuilding, repair and conversion of offshore support vessels, announced yesterday that its wholly-owned subsidiary, GO Offshore Pty Ltd, has been awarded a chartering contract worth up to AUD 94.8 million.

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The vessel under the charter will be a 100-tonne Bollard Pull OSV, for FPSO infield support in the gas field of 40-year life in Australia. The client is a renowned international oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) company. The chartering contract is confirmed for 5 years from May 2017 with the option of an additional 5 year extension. The contract value for the confirmed period of 5 years is AUD47,4 million and with the Option, the total contract value is AUD94.8 million.
Commenting on the contract win, Mr.Michael See, Group CEO said:

“We are delighted to have secured this chartering contract. The client is a world renowned E&P company and we are pleased to establish a working relationship with them. Otto Marine draws years of experience and expertise in fleet management and advanced planning, and gradually built up our strong reputation in chartering, vessel delivery, and reliability. This in turn fostered a strong customer network that has continued to generate enquiries and charter contracts. We will continue to enhance the reputation and generate business through advanced planning, which will help us fulfill our charter contracts, maintain our utilization rates, thus improve the efficiency in our operations.
Overall, we are on the right path to enhance Otto Marine’s credibility as a trusted business partner.”

Malaysia’s Petronas said Monday it has delayed the startup of its second FLNG facility as the energy giant is cutting costs in a depressed oil price environment.

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Petronas' FLNG 1 Image courtesy Petronas
“We have taken the decision to re-phase the Petronas Floating LNG 2 project, to be commissioned at a later date than originally planned,” Petronas’ President and CEO, Datuk Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin said at a press conference announcing the company’s 2015 results.

However, the CEO did not reveal a new timeframe for the startup of Petronas’ PFLNG2. The floating LNG facility, with a capacity of 1.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), was previously expected to start production in 2018.

Petronas held a keel laying ceremony for PFLNG2 at Samsung Heavy Industry’s shipyard on Geoje Island, South Korea in October last year.
The second floating LNG facility for Petronas will be used for the liquefaction, production and offloading of natural gas in the Rotan field, 130 kilometers offshore Sabah.
Petronas’ first floating LNG unit, the PFLNG1, being built at South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) shipyard in Okpo, is expected to commence operations in 2016.

Topaz Energy and Marine, a leading offshore support vessel company, has secured 14 offshore support vessel contracts with BP Exploration (Caspian Sea) Limited ("BP").
Under the terms of the agreement, Topaz will supply 14 offshore support vessels for a five year period plus two one-year options at current market terms, primarily in support of BP’s ACG and Shah Deniz II fields offshore Azerbaijan.

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mage: Topaz Energy
The agreement extends currently running contracts for the 14 vessels until 2023 including all options. These contracts bring Topaz’s global revenue backlog to nearly US$1.4bn and demonstrates the company’s competitiveness in the Caspian market.

René Kofod-Olsen, Chief Executive Officer, Topaz Energy and Marine, said, “We are humbled by BP’s continued trust in our capabilities and look forward to repaying that confidence by consistent world-class service. Our ability to secure long-term contracts with a reputed oil major such as BP reflects the value and quality of Topaz’s operations in the Caspian and globally. Our exemplary operational and safety track record and our commitment to Azerbaijan allow us to build our position in the face of a challenging market. The agreement provides a long-term platform from which to build further scale in the broader Caspian and adds significantly to Topaz’s credit strength through tremendous revenue visibility.”

Topaz’s fleet contracted by BP through this landmark agreement spans large anchor-handlers, platform supply vessels and emergency response and recovery vessels. Topaz’s total fleet serving in Azerbaijan numbers 21 vessels. Topaz has been active in Azerbaijan for several decades and is committed to Azerbaijan and the wider Caspian for the long-term, demonstrated through its high levels of localization and significant investments over many years.

Topaz Energy and Marine is a leading offshore support vessel company providing marine solutions to the global energy industry with primary focus on the Caspian, Middle East, West Africa and Subsea operations in the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico. Headquartered in Dubai, Topaz operates a fleet of 100 offshore support vessels of an average age of 7 years. Topaz is a subsidiary of Renaissance Services SAOG, a publicly traded company on the Muscat Securities Market, Oman.

Keppel FELS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M) is on track to deliver a fifth high-specification accommodation semisubmersible (semi) to Floatel International Ltd (Floatel) on time, on budget and with a perfect safety record. The semi, which is built to Keppel's proprietary SSAUTM 5000NG design, was named Floatel Triumph during a ceremony held earlier today. It will be chartered by INPEX Operations Australia for work in Ichthys Field, off Western Australia.

Mr Wong Kok Seng, Managing Director of Keppel O&M (Offshore) and Keppel FELS, said, "We are pleased to deliver a fifth accommodation vessel to Floatel safely, on time and on budget. As a leading designer, builder and repairer of mobile offshore rigs, we are able to provide the highest quality and most cost effective solutions that are customised to suit our clients' needs. This includes non-drilling solutions, like accommodation vessels and offshore maintenance platforms.
"Our yards remain busy for the rest of the year, with a number of deliveries in the pipeline. As we ride through this challenging period in the offshore and marine industry, we continue to work closely with our quality customers to ensure that we deliver projects to their highest satisfaction."

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Developed by Keppel's Deepwater Technology Group, the SSAUTM 5000NG is an enhanced design that meets the stringent UK HSE requirements to work in the UK sector of the North Sea, as well as the Gulf of Mexico, Brazil and Western Australia. It is also equipped with state-of-the-art accommodation and recreational facilities to provide increased comfort for its 500-person crew.

Mr Peter Jacobsson, CEO of Floatel, added, "Each of the accommodation vessels that Keppel has delivered to Floatel has been performing very well. They are uniquely designed to provide superior stability, safety and living conditions, meeting the stringent rules and regulations for worldwide operations. Just like its sister rigs, we are fully confident that Floatel Triumph will serve us well and we look forward to more win-win partnerships with Keppel.

"Despite the current challenging environment, all our vessels continue to receive strong demand and have high utilisation rates. In the current oil price environment, sustaining production levels is key for oil companies, and accommodation units are required as they reduce downtime during periods of essential maintenance. Douglas Westwood forecasts that growth in the offshore accommodation market for units supporting operational activities will be sustained at 3% CAGR from 2015 to 2020."

Keppel FELS previously delivered Floatel Superior, Floatel Reliance, Floatel Victory and Floatel Endurance, to Floatel. Floatel Reliance and Floatel Victory are also built to the SSAUTM design and the latter is currently in operations for BP at Clair Ridge Field, West of Shetland, United Kingdom. Floatel Reliance has recently completed its contract with Petrobras in Brazil. Floatel Superior and Floatel Endurance are built to Keppel's proprietary DSSTM 20NS design and have been chartered to Premier in Solan Field, United Kingdom and Chevron in Wheatstone Field, Australia respectively.

Floating accommodation platforms are needed to provide additional living quarters for drilling and production personnel. Such support is required during hook-up and commissioning in the development phase, for maintenance and upgrading during the production phase, as well as for decommissioning.
In the video below you can see the heavy-load operation of the Floatel Triumph living quarters, which took place on July 25th, 2015:VIDEO

Built to Keppel's proprietary KFELS B Class design, the rigs, CANTARELL I and CANTARELL II, will be chartered to PEMEX, Mexico's national oil company, for operations in the Cantarell oil field in offshore Mexico. They are the first two of five jackup rigs that Keppel FELS is building for Grupo R.

Mr Wong Kok Seng, Managing Director of Keppel O&M (Offshore) and Keppel FELS, said:
"We are pleased to deliver another two rigs in 2016 to our quality client Grupo R. Despite the current low oil price environment, the market continues to prefer safe and efficient rigs with a proven track record like our KFELS B Class. We have built strong relationships with our customers and continue to engage them in developing win-win solutions."

With the two rigs delivered, there will be 10 KFELS B Class rigs working in Mexico, two of which are directly owned by PEMEX. It is the dominant rig design in the region, with those already in operation turning out robust, efficient and economical, performances for Mexico.

The KFELS B Class jackup is designed to operate in water depths of up to 400 feet and drill to depths of 30,000 feet. Developed by Keppel's Offshore Technology Development (OTD), the KFELS B Class jackup is equipped with an advanced and fully-automated high capacity rack and pinion jacking system, and Self-Positioning Fixation System. It has accommodation with full amenities for 150 persons.

Keppel has delivered projects to Mexico since 2004 when it was awarded a contract to build two accommodation modules. Besides building new jackup rigs for Mexico, Keppel has also repaired and serviced a total of 18 rigs that have been deployed in Mexico.
With the deliveries, Keppel FELS has delivered three rigs in 2016 to-date.

Nobelwind announces the start of the construction of a 165 MW offshore windfarm in the North Sea

Nobelwind announces the start of the construction works of the 4th offshore wind farm in the Belgian territorial waters. The first activities will be performed in the harbor of Oostende, on the REBO site, that will be used as a Marshalling harbor for the Nobelwind project. Nobelwind has installed its offshore grid which is operational and connected to the Zeebrugge sub-station of Elia.

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The shareholder consortium around Nobelwind consists out of the Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo, the Dutch investor Meewind and Parkwind. Parkwind is in charge of the coordination of the construction works.
Nobelwind has appointed Jan De Nul as EPCI contractor to install all foundations and the 50 3.3 MW MHI Vestas wind-turbines offshore. These turbines will have an installed capacity of 165 megawatt (MW) and will supply green power to 186.000 Belgian families on a yearly basis.

The start of the works is running according to planning. The first foundation components arrived in the harbor of Oostende on March 23. As of the end of March the project expects additional foundation components to be delivered on site every 2 to 3 weeks. The REBO Site will be used for final assembly of the foundations. The cranes and other equipment needed to perform the assembly works will be installed in the coming days on site by the different contractors.
The first installation offshore is expected to start early May. By that date the installation vessel will pick up the different foundation components and prepare for installation offshore. The installation of all foundations is expected to last until the beginning of September, this depending on the weather conditions.

Experienced marine services provider, Offshore Marine Management (OMM) has formed a partnership with leading vessel owner, Rederij Groen (RG), to bring the Offshore Renewables Industry a purpose built Service Operations Vessel (SOV) for the Operations & Maintenance (O&M) market with a versatile design.

The companies engaged Saltwater Engineering in Holland for the design of the vessel. Saltwater's team of professional naval architects provide a great wealth of marine engineering and naval architectural expertise into the design of this new concept vessel, ensuring it meets the long term operational needs of the offshore industry.

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Image: OMM
The SOV has been designed based on two main principles; real time experiences during the offshore installation, maintenance and repair phases of offshore energy projects and the realisation that distances increase from base ports to wind-farms so there is a requirement to stay offshore longer. The vessels' versatility combines a new approach to offshore maintenance support which enables a proactive response to O&M tasks for both subsea and topside tasks that mitigates risk by utilising only one vessel as platform to maintain customer's whole system integrity. The vessel can deliver both top side preventative maintenance services and subsea cable repair response plans.

As the view of offshore windfarm O&M changes its aims to incorporate subsea risk to the revenues of the windfarm investors. The vessel incorporates this ideology that the windfarm is seen as both topside and subsea but all one asset.

The vessel is designed as a comfortable "platform" for optimal operation of its motion compensated gangway system for personnel transfer and for the active heave compensated deck crane operations with the support of 2 daughter craft. DP performance is guaranteed by the thrusters keeping the vessel in accurate position up to a wave height (Hs) of 2.5 m. The workshops at boat deck level allow for a proper service of the inbuilt diving spread equipment and the inbuilt ROV control and habitats. The ability to carry over 10 containers for spares and supplies to potential offshore accommodation stations will be an asset to any O&M managers.

Her accommodation is arranged such to facilitate 60 POB (crew and offshore workers), with single cabins for the SPS staff all arranged on or above the main deck. The vessel is fitted with a hospital, a fitness room, change rooms (both men and women), a large mess room, a cinema and several recreation areas for the comfort of the technicians and crew who will remain offshore reducing time to site.

The vessel is readily adaptable to support the full O&M work throughout the year, both planned and adhoc work. The back deck of the vessel is strengthened to carry spare cable for emergency repairs of infield cables whilst still providing its primary role of supporting the turbine technicians. This vessel has the endurance of 30 days offshore and will support works around turbine masts, substations platforms, topsides and subsea tasks, power, telecoms and mattress applications as contracted. This vessel is a dynamically positioned, versatile maintenance vessel and for this duty has rapid and efficient handling characteristics.

Rob Grimmond, CEO at OMM, commented, "This is the next stage of tomorrows' thinking towards installation and O&M services brought forward to today. Our first-hand experience in offshore projects and the specialist knowledge of Saltwater Engineering have provided an extensive level of insight which has allowed us to create such a purpose built design and specification.
Working many years with Rederij Groen supplying many vessels to the industry it is a natural fit partnership for the delivery of this innovative vessel and services to the industry in an effort to reduce costs and improve response and readiness times. Engaging Saltwater Engineering for the design completed the necessary skill set to bring the design to life. I look forward to seeing this vessel delivered for the future of the offshore renewables industry.''

Rederij Groen added ''In the last decade Rederij Groen has made quite significant innovative steps and with this new venture , we confirm our proactive approach towards future developments in the offshore industry. This collaboration will allow Rederij Groen and OMM to grow and expand and both are excited about this new partnership and the future prospects it enables.''

The Maersk Deliverer has been on contract with CABGOC since May 2012, and is due to end in December 2016. Upon the terms of agreement, Maersk Drilling is entitled to receive compensation for the remaining part of the contract. The contract cancellation will be financially neutral to Maersk Drilling.

“With regret we take note of the contract termination, and it is a reminder of the very challenging conditions in the offshore rig market with oil companies restraining activities and capital spending in response to the lower oil price environment. We expect to base the rig in West Africa, and will continue to explore opportunities with our customers in primarily West and East Africa, which remain strategic markets for us,” Michael Reimer Mortensen, Maersk Drilling head of global sales said.

Maersk Deliverer was built in 2009 and is designed for year-round operation in areas such as Brazil, the Gulf of Mexico, West and East Africa and Asia Pacific at water depths of up to 3000m (10,000ft.).

Apprentice Jens Erik Eriksen in Kværner and Norway’s minister of petroleum and energy Tord Lien marked the construction start on the Johan Sverdrup utility and living quarters platform on the island of Stord, north of Stavanger, today, Thursday 31 March.

“Johan Sverdrup is the biggest industrial project in modern times in Norway, and will create considerable value for society for generations to come. Today we are kicking off the construction of the utility and living quarters platform, which is the second of four platform currently under construction in the first project phase,” says Kjetel Digre, Statoil’s project director for Johan Sverdrup.

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Johan Sverdrup project Image: Statoil
Statoil awarded a joint venture between Kværner and KBR the contract for engineering and construction of the topside for the utility and living quarters platform for the Johan Sverdrup field in June 2015.

Stord is central in a comprehensive Johan Sverdrup project. Kværner Stord will fabricate parts of the topside steel frame, and will also assemble all parts for the utility and living quarters platform before the platform is installed on the field in 2019. At peak around 2000Kværner employees will be involved in Johan Sverdrup deliveries.

Kværner’s sub-supplier Apply Leirvik on Stord will construct the accommodation module for the living quarters platform, which will be the biggest on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS).

The other modules for the utility and living quarters platform will be constructed at the Energomontaz Polnoc Gdynia (EPG), Mostostal Pomorze Gdansk (MPG), Mostostal Chojnice and Crist Offshore in Poland, as well as in Gothenburg, Sweden. Detailed engineering is performed at KBR’s office in Leatherhead, London, and at Apply Leirvik on Stord. The fabrication work was also kicked off today at two of the yards in Poland and at Apply Leirvik’s yard.

“The Johan Sverdrup project is growing every day. It is a complex puzzle with activities spread all over the world. We are 14,000 people working on the project every day in 2016, and together we will perform 100 million working hours. We depend on everyone delivering as required, and all pieces of the puzzle falling into place at the right time and with the right quality. Our top priority is a safe working environment. We do not want any injuries among personnel working for the Johan Sverdrup project,” says Digre.
The utility and living quarters platform will accommodate the crew working on the Johan Sverdrup field during the field life of 50 years. The platform will have the largest living quarters on the NCS with a capacity of 560 people. The platform will also accommodate the field’s control and emergency centre, and some utility systems covering the whole field centre.

The platform will be completed in the first quarter of 2019, before it is installed on the Johan Sverdrup field by use of the world’s largest heavy-lift vessel, the Pioneering Spirit.

Norwegian Shipowners’ Association Reports Growing Number Of Vessels In Layup

The Norwegian Shipowners’ Association says that as of February 2016, 101 offshore vessels belonging to its members were in lay-up.

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“If the shipowners’ prognosis is realised, this number will grow by 10 by the end of June 2016,” said the association. “A significant increase is expected in the number of stacked rigs. As of February 2016 the total was 16, and offshore contractors expect this number to rise to 23 by the end of June 2016.”

The association said its members also anticipate more staff reductions in 2016. In all, between 4,000 and 4,500 employees are expected to be laid off or terminated over the course of the year, compared to 7,300 in 2015. Available training positions are expected to fall by around 200 in 2016. The association said the majority of reductions will be Norwegian apprenticeships in the offshore contractor and offshore service segments.